2014 Benjamin A. Botkin Prize Awarded to Robert Cogswell

At
its recent annual meeting in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the American Folklore
Society named Dr. Robert "Roby” Cogswell of
Nashville, Tennessee, as the 2014 recipient of its prestigious Benjamin A.
Botkin Prize.

In
its report, the 2014 Botkin Prize Committee praised the outstanding contribution
of this year’s awardee, noting: "Throughout his long and successful career, Dr.
Cogswell’s intelligence, creativity, and uncompromising commitment to the field
of folklore has helped establish what now epitomizes 'best practices' in public
sector folklore methodology and practice. He has successfully guided the
Tennessee Folklife Program from the infancy of state folklore programs in 1984 to
its present position as a nationally-recognized model program by undertaking
important documentation and archival projects and designing and carrying out
innumerable innovative public programs. In addition, he has built strong
information sharing and support networks that have benefited traditional
artists, folklorists, the larger arts community, and members of the public both
in his home state of Tennessee and throughout the United States.”

A
native of Shelbyville, Tennessee, Cogswell received a BA at Vanderbilt and an
MA and PhD in folklore at Indiana University. Highlights of his career include
the Tennessee program at the 1986 Smithsonian Festival of American Folklife and
the National Folk Festival in Chattanooga; his work with the Tennessee Folklore
Society; and expanding the Tennessee
Governor’s Awards in the Arts to recognize and honor folk artists. Dr.
Cogswell’s projects run the gamut from music, to craft, to sport, to cultural
tourism. As a musician, photographer,
and author, Cogswell’s credits include co-production of the Handbook for
Tennessee Folk Artists, and authoring the acclaimed book Tradition:
Tennessee Lives & Legacies (2010). Throughout his career, Dr. Cogswell has spoken
out on behalf of the ethical treatment of artists and issues concerning public arts
policy. He has been one of the field’s strongest advocates for public folklore
and public policies that insist on integrity and sensitivity in presenting
traditional culture.

The
Botkin Prize is given each year by the AFS and its Public Programs Section in recognition of the work of Benjamin A.
Botkin (1901-1975). Eminent New Deal-era folklorist, national folklore editor
of the Federal Writers’ Project in 1938-1939, advocate for the public
responsibilities of folklorists, author and compiler of many publications on
American folklore for general audiences, and head of the Archive of American
Folk Song at the Library of Congress from 1942 to 1945, Botkin has had a major
impact on the field of public folklore and on the public understanding of
folklore.